Last man on moon speaks at institute

Plan to ax lunar mission called 'mistake' at dedication of Ocala research facility.

Dr. Harrison Schmitt speaks to a crowd at the IHMC grand opening in Downtown Ocala, fl on Friday January 29, 2010. Schmitt is the last person to walk on the moon and a former senator. His talk recounts his trip to the moon in 1972 on Apollo 17.

Published: Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 6:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 12:19 a.m.

The day after the White House leaked plans to cancel NASA's return mission to the moon, the last man to step foot on the lunar surface called the decision "a colossal mistake."

Harrison Schmitt, who was the lunar module pilot for the Apollo 17 mission, said the moon holds the keys to understanding Earth's origins, and it is the logical place to prepare for any future manned mission to Mars.

"I think it is extremely important, for geopolitical reasons, that the U.S. be the leader in manned space exploration," Schmitt said Friday at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in downtown Ocala, where he delivered a lecture on his experience during the Apollo 17 mission.

Schmitt was in town to help christen IHMC, a research center that delves deeply into the science of artificial intelligence and counts NASA among its clients.

The event began with a public dedication of IHMC, which is located in the renovated building that once housed the Ocala Public Library. The dedication drew more than 100 local, state and federal dignitaries, including representatives of the city of Ocala, the Marion County Commission, Enterprise Florida and the U.S. Economic Development Administration, all of which contributed funding to the effort to land IHMC.

At 6 p.m., Schmitt took the stage to recount his experiences as an astronaut.

A geologist by training, he said moon exploration greatly advanced scientists' understanding of Earth's history because the lunar surface has changed little over time compared to the Earth's. It has also become the basis of "comparative planetology," he said, meaning the study of the moon allows scientists to better evaluate the surfaces, atmospheres and other characteristics of other planets.

His lecture comes on the day The New York Times reported a shift in space exploration policy coming from the Obama administration.

A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Times that Obama was scrapping NASA's plans to return to the moon. The administration also will turn to private companies to handle manned space travel, the official said.

What that means is that, in the immediate future, commercial enterprises would provide transportation to and from the International Space Station. What would happen to the Ares I rocket, which NASA has been developing at a cost of $9 billion to replace the space shuttle fleet, is not known.

Schmitt said turning over space flight to private companies would be a mistake.

"If it is a commercial effort only to visit the space station, then it is the beginning of the end of human space exploration," he said.

"Ultimately, you abandon the moon to China, you abandon the space station to Russia, and you abandon liberty to the ages.

"If China and Russia are the dominant space powers, then liberty is at risk because they don't believe in it."

Schmitt was not the only former astronaut to react strongly to The New York Times story Friday. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Florida, who flew on the space shuttle in 1986, said the president's "Green eyeshade-wearing advisors are wrong."

"Look, our space program is the very reason we have products like GPS systems, special firefighter equipment, climate change and hurricane satellites, auto air bags, and health care devices such as kidney and heart pumps and Lasik surgery," Nelson said in a press release.

"NASA also has enabled America to have the most advanced satellite technology for national security purposes. And it has been NASA that has inspired generations of young Americans to pursue careers in science, technology and engineering - keeping the U.S. a global leader in those fields."

Dr. Ken Ford, the IHMC director, reserved comment on the White House's apparent change in policy, saying he wanted to see all the details before speaking publicly about it.

But IHMC has long had strong ties to NASA. Ford said the research center worked extensively on a design for a new lunar rover for a return trip to the moon and is studying artificial intelligence applications for the space agency.

What will happen to the lunar rover if Obama scuttles the moon mission is unknown.

<p>The day after the White House leaked plans to cancel NASA's return mission to the moon, the last man to step foot on the lunar surface called the decision "a colossal mistake."</p><p>Harrison Schmitt, who was the lunar module pilot for the Apollo 17 mission, said the moon holds the keys to understanding Earth's origins, and it is the logical place to prepare for any future manned mission to Mars.</p><p>"I think it is extremely important, for geopolitical reasons, that the U.S. be the leader in manned space exploration," Schmitt said Friday at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in downtown Ocala, where he delivered a lecture on his experience during the Apollo 17 mission.</p><p>Schmitt was in town to help christen IHMC, a research center that delves deeply into the science of artificial intelligence and counts NASA among its clients.</p><p>The event began with a public dedication of IHMC, which is located in the renovated building that once housed the Ocala Public Library. The dedication drew more than 100 local, state and federal dignitaries, including representatives of the city of Ocala, the Marion County Commission, Enterprise Florida and the U.S. Economic Development Administration, all of which contributed funding to the effort to land IHMC.</p><p>At 6 p.m., Schmitt took the stage to recount his experiences as an astronaut.</p><p>A geologist by training, he said moon exploration greatly advanced scientists' understanding of Earth's history because the lunar surface has changed little over time compared to the Earth's. It has also become the basis of "comparative planetology," he said, meaning the study of the moon allows scientists to better evaluate the surfaces, atmospheres and other characteristics of other planets.</p><p>His lecture comes on the day The New York Times reported a shift in space exploration policy coming from the Obama administration.</p><p>A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Times that Obama was scrapping NASA's plans to return to the moon. The administration also will turn to private companies to handle manned space travel, the official said.</p><p>What that means is that, in the immediate future, commercial enterprises would provide transportation to and from the International Space Station. What would happen to the Ares I rocket, which NASA has been developing at a cost of $9 billion to replace the space shuttle fleet, is not known.</p><p>Schmitt said turning over space flight to private companies would be a mistake.</p><p>"If it is a commercial effort only to visit the space station, then it is the beginning of the end of human space exploration," he said.</p><p>"Ultimately, you abandon the moon to China, you abandon the space station to Russia, and you abandon liberty to the ages.</p><p>"If China and Russia are the dominant space powers, then liberty is at risk because they don't believe in it."</p><p>Schmitt was not the only former astronaut to react strongly to The New York Times story Friday. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Florida, who flew on the space shuttle in 1986, said the president's "Green eyeshade-wearing advisors are wrong."</p><p>"Look, our space program is the very reason we have products like GPS systems, special firefighter equipment, climate change and hurricane satellites, auto air bags, and health care devices such as kidney and heart pumps and Lasik surgery," Nelson said in a press release.</p><p>"NASA also has enabled America to have the most advanced satellite technology for national security purposes. And it has been NASA that has inspired generations of young Americans to pursue careers in science, technology and engineering - keeping the U.S. a global leader in those fields."</p><p>Dr. Ken Ford, the IHMC director, reserved comment on the White House's apparent change in policy, saying he wanted to see all the details before speaking publicly about it.</p><p>But IHMC has long had strong ties to NASA. Ford said the research center worked extensively on a design for a new lunar rover for a return trip to the moon and is studying artificial intelligence applications for the space agency.</p><p>What will happen to the lunar rover if Obama scuttles the moon mission is unknown.</p>